Would a chihuahua be happy in a flat?

lilythompson
lilythompson

Good morning all.

So I love animals, I used to have two adorable female dogs but now I don't see them anymore for family reasons and I would really like to have my own dog now. The only thing is I live in an apartment and I work during the day. I would like a small dog (I was thinking of a chihuahua) but if you know other small dog breeds, I would like some ideas? But I'm afraid the dog will cry or bark during the day when I'm away, and I have neighbours.

Can you give me some advice, please.

Thank you in advance

4 answers
elliesanderson
elliesanderson

All dogs can live in a house or apartment, with or without a garden. Absolutely all of them. The question is not the place where the dog lives but the rhythm of its life: how many walks per day, where are you going to walk your dog, for how long, what activities are possible, how long will the dog be left alone ... These are the type of questions you must ask yourself. Crying and barking can be caused by loneliness, but the good news is that your dog can be taught not to be anxious when he is alone. It may take some time though.

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pauljohnson
pauljohnson

If you don't want your dog to cry when he is alone, he must be trained to being left alone and being ok about it. A simple method to do so, is to put his bowl of food and water in a room and close the door, this will help him understand than it's not a bad thing to be isolated as it comes with good things (food). You will have to increase the length of your absence gradually and always leave your dog something to keep him occupied (with toys for example). When it comes to barking, it's a bit more complicated.

You have to understand why your dog is barking at and define a"tempo". For example: a noise (not necessarily a noise we can hear), the dog pays attention, looks towards the noise, with his ears pointing in the direction of the noise, his head tends forward a little, begins to make a "woof" then barks frankly.

It is necessary to react when the dog "attention grabbed, turns towards the noise, with the ears which point in the direction of the noise, its head tends a little forward", to divert its attention cheerfully by congratulating it. Give him a reward because there, he should be barking and he is silent. Little by little, he will be able to relate "noise" and being silent as the right behaviour. Then you have to be serious and constant ... and it will happen, even in the absence of the person.

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lilythompson
lilythompson

Thank you for this information, it's really helpful. Do you know how we can teach a dog not to bark or cry when he is alone?

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Wamiz_UK
Wamiz_UK

Hello lilythompson,

We understand your concern about leaving a dog alone and we believe the answers you have received are very good. We would like to complete some of these answers by sharing with you links to some articles that might interest you: 

Hope this will help you :), if not, don't hesitate to ask more questions, we are here for that! Have a nice day,

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